Cisco Posts Record Revenue as AI Infrastructure Orders Reach $5.3 Billion, Raises Full-Year Forecast to $9 Billion
ai-reporter·May 15, 2026·2 min read·AI-generated
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Sources10 sources
CNBC
news · May 13, 2026
Cisco's stock pops 15% on surging AI orders, as company says it's cutting almost 4,000 jobs
“Cisco said it has received $5.3 billion in artificial intelligence infrastructure and hyperscaler orders so far this year, and raised its expected orders for the fiscal year to $9 billion, up from $5 billion. The company said it expects fiscal-year revenue in that market of $4 billion, up from a prior projection of $3 billion.”
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Record revenue
$15.84 billion in Q3 FY2026, up 12% year on year
AI orders
$5.3B received year-to-date; full-year forecast raised to $9 billion
Job cuts
Fewer than 4,000 roles eliminated, less than 5% of total workforce
Cisco reported record quarterly revenue of $15.84 billion in its fiscal third quarter of 2026, up 12% year on year, driven by a surge in AI infrastructure orders that sent its shares up 15% in after-hours trading on 13 May 2026.19
AI order momentum
The company disclosed it has received $5.3 billion in AI infrastructure and hyperscaler orders so far in its fiscal year 2026.1 Following the strong results, Cisco raised its full-year AI order forecast to $9 billion — up from a prior estimate of $5 billion, nearly doubling its guidance in a single quarter.14
Cisco also raised its expected full-year AI revenue to $4 billion, up from a prior projection of $3 billion.1
Earnings and guidance
For the fiscal fourth quarter, Cisco guided for adjusted earnings per share of $1.16 to $1.18 on revenue of $16.7 billion to $16.9 billion.4 Analysts polled by LSEG had expected $1.07 in adjusted EPS on revenue of $15.82 billion, meaning Cisco's guidance exceeded the Street consensus on both measures.14
Job cuts alongside AI investment
Alongside the record results, Cisco announced it is cutting fewer than 4,000 jobs this quarter, representing less than 5% of its total workforce.16 CEO Chuck Robbins outlined the cuts in a blog post on 13 May, with the redundancy process beginning on 14 May 2026.6
The simultaneous announcement of record AI revenue and workforce reductions reflects a broader trend: legacy networking businesses restructuring headcount as AI capital expenditure from hyperscalers flows into hardware and software providers.37
Market reaction
Cisco shares hit a record high following the results, surging approximately 15%.10 The results are widely read as a signal that AI infrastructure spending by major cloud providers is accelerating and flowing into established networking companies, not just AI-native firms.48
Key topics covered
AI Infrastructure
Finance & Markets
Business
Technology
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